Spectrum Noir Sparkle Pens | Product Review & Comparison to Wink of Stella

[@LCro958]

Thanks for the demonstration. I have not used Wink of Stella sparkle pens. I do like my SN sparkle pens however, some of the colors do leak when using them so they get messy on your fingers. Not all the colors it seems to be mainly the reds and pinks for some reason. I do love sparkles though.

[@anne-mariestevenson3296]

I have the vintage set which I'm obsessed with. There are so many US crafting bloggers/youtubers who seem to think that non US products are poorly designed and made. There is so much innovation going on and I have fab craft stuff from the Netherlands, Canada, Italy, Japan, Germany. I've noticed SSS are carrying several UK companies now. Sorry forgot to say, they do reactivate and blend on other cardstock. I find it's best with another CC product called Sheena's stamping card.

[@barbaralee2167]

Amy I have a set of 12 and they are water based which means you can use them for the alcohol markers but they are also great with any water color medium (pencils, ink and paint). I love them and they are very easy to use. HSN carries the 12 pack in spring/summer and autumn/winter.

[@jaynehill4330]

I googled how to store these pens and got your informative review on both sets! Perfect, thanks!

[@stamps2much]

Thank you for the review I just bought the whole set of the spectrum noir sparkle pens and wasn't sure how to store them but you answered in this review tfs..Barbara

[@stampyra]

Great review! Thank you for all of the great information. I never knew about the special edition violet color wtth the sets. I love my wink of stella pens because of the fine brush tip & the champagne shimmer, but the clear shimmer in the Spectrum Noir pens is beautiful. I'm sure you've been told that Spectrum Noir has already come our with a set with a black, silver & gold. I think it's called the metallic set. They also have 12 new vintage colors. Thanks, Jil

[@mrsmcintyre69]

I LOVE the clear spectrum noir. I wasn't crazy about the colored ones as I felt too much product was dispersed at a time and it was hard to move around. Maybe it just takes practice. But I'm obsessed with the clear ones.

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

+Jennifer Lowry wipe them off on a baby wipe/tissue and then just make sure not to squeeze when holding - I did that and they're been great ever since

[@auroradawnikins]

Hi,.. Just to let you know that there was s now 9 x sets of 3 colours in the spectrum noire,plus a set of 3 metallic sparkles and the clear... The metallics are to die for,lol... Dawn from the UK

[@janetmccready8104]

thank you for being so informative, and speaking so clearly. it drives me crazy, to plug in to a reviewer, and you can't understand them, too fast, not clear what ever. and thanks for all the info.

[@sososick1135]

That is exactly the reason I picked up sets of both for the cool and warm shimmer.

[@winstonsuz]

I watched the video because I just bought my first markers and got the glitter markers from Spectrum Noir. I wasn't understanding the instructions after getting the yellow ring off on how to open them! LOL thanks for that! I love them so far now that I got them open! LOL

[@phyllisnufer]

Thank you so much for doing this video! I've always wondered about the difference. I do find that the clear Spectrum Noir seems to sparkle more than the Wink of Stella. They both have their positive attributes. Thanks again.

[@joannechung5271]

Thanks Amy. Your videos are always so helpful and informative. Love hearing your son in your videos!

[@ripley275]

Update, Jan 2019, Spectrum Noir now has 33 colors including 2 Metallics....black, silver and gold, yay!

[@christygetscrafty]

Thanks for the awesome review, Amy!

[@HewyDewyLewy]

Hey AmyR, You have convinced me to get the Spectrum Noir Sparkles. I have to admit, I don't know how to do the watercoloring or the different shading but I'm totally okay with that. Love this review.

[@Ultimatecruegirl]

Great review Amy thanks so much. I can see benefits to both and still can't make up my mind, so that must mean I need both right? LOL

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

+Rose J yep LOL

[@jessicaflores6327]

Prairie Paper & Ink (AmyR) where did you buy them?

[@pattiepan]

Thanks Amy a good list of comparisons.... pat

[@fayethompson9291]

I have both and love them all, but I really appreciated this info. Thank you.

[@karentalbot4372]

HSN sells gold, silver, black in spectrum noir. I also noticed you're pressing the wink of Stella more and not the spectrums. I also used the copic blending fluid to refil my wink instead of water. Figured it would dry quicker on regular paper, than water. No difference in performance. Joann craft stores carry spectrum glitter pens (coupons!) I like the spectrum versus wink of Stella. Thanks!

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

I was pressing the WoS more b/c they'd been sitting for some time (weeks, some for months) upright and needed to get the ink flowing again and the SN ones were brand new that I just got flowing.

[@terristephens9820]

Excellent review. Thank you!

[@darylbottema-adkins7957]

Hi Amy. Just catching up on some of your videos which are always great to watch. I was curious about the difference in these products and I find this really helpful. Thanks. I noticed on the website that SN now has a three pack that has gold, silver and black. Still not sure if SN has white.

[@suebouch4074]

Hi... thanks for the comparison and review of the sparkle/Glitter pens... will you be doing a color chart once you get the other three? it would be great to see that :)

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

+Sue Bouch I don't do color charts sorry!

[@suebouch4074]

No problem... I probably do too many... Spend more time creating them and organizing than doing... But... I'm doing a bit more lately. Thanks for your reply & have a great night! :)

[@loricalass4068]

will the sparkle be visible if the work is put under scanner and then digitized on the computer?

[@JustClaire]

Great comparison along with a first impression! Thank you for sharing :) Hugs, Claire

[@valeriestone7333]

Spectrum Noir now has Black, Silver, and Gold ❤️

[@scrappingirl318]

Spectrum Noir Sparkle pens do have a gold and silver and now a whole Christmas color set in the black case. They also do amazing lettering. I don't do lettering, but have seen it done and they do wonderfully. Also, the pens are to be stored horizontally....at least the alcohol and watercolor Spectrum Noir pens anyway. They do wonderful with blending too, not just blues with blues or greens with greens, etc. They also cost less than wink of Stella from what I've seen anyway. They use a very high quality artist grade brush nib and you can get very fine detailing from them. You just have to work with them to get the feel as with any new artist tool. ☺

[@AafkeVultink]

Just a question. Can you mix your own black on a plastic pallet with a spectrumnoir, like you would with watercolor? If so that would make it easier to use one set brand.

[@christopherfugle6592]

Hi Amy- good technical review on sparkles! I wonder if the Wink of Stella may be alcohol/gel based compared to Spectrum Noir's which may be water based? I've been looking for the Spectrum Noir in Canada without any luck so far. I hesitant to try them as a three pack as supplies are expensive especially when you look at CAN$ vs US$ exchange rates. Wink of Stella in the US goes for $6.99US but here at Michaels in Canada $14-16 which equates to almost double the price. The clear Spectrum trio is $16.95US so I gather close to $35CAN if found. If bought from Simon Says Stamp (great retailer for sure) we need to add customs charges on top of those prices as well. So choosing the right products for Canadians make sense financially. In your opinion (and having spent a fortune) which of the two brands is the most flexible and bang for the buck? Thanks as always...

[@sabinev6723]

+Christopher Fugle I have ordered a ton from Simon Says and have never paid customs. My order I received the other day was from their big sale at the beginning of May and was about 100US but they still only mark the package at less. Might be worth checking out especially when they have their $5 coupons as it sets off shipping!

[@anne-mariestevenson3296]

+Christopher Fugle Crafter's Companion in a British company so it might be cheaper to buy them direct from the UK. They are on craft telly here and they are all Geordies.

[@craftylittlerthings]

Christopher Fugle Crafters Companion who make the SN ones send overseas and I don't think their p&p are too bad, worth a look though x

[@christopherfugle6592]

Thx Ann

[@nabirahanwar5094]

I have all of spectrum noir and 7 of wink of stella

[@barbarasandefur5016]

Can someone please explain to me how these work

[@anncelino]

Spectrum Sparkle does have a metallic set with Black, Gold and Sterling.

[@marylatno3797]

I have the spectrum Noir sparkle Pens but I find they do NOT dry. When I put my hand on the card the glitter comes off. Can you tell me what I am doing wrong. Thank you.

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

I've found they dry just fine - the WofS ones seem to have more binding agent in them to hold the glitter but any glitter will rub off if it's handled a lot. I don't rub my hands on my cards and I've had no problem with the SN shimmer after I've added it :)

[@marylatno3797]

Thank you very much. I will try not to touch them......

[@TiuTauTilhi]

@@PrairiePaperandInk Well would you have any tips, now 3 years later, to stop the glitter from rubbing off then? I have the same problem with my new set of SN colours and colourless ones: the glitter will just brush off into my fingers when handling the card. Sure, I could try not touching it, but some recipient of said card will likely touch it, so it's a shame the glitter just comes off. Currently testing with letting it dry for 3 days and counting, to see if there is any change.

[@JaneMetcalfe]

I believe the Spectrums are water-based so I should imagine they are very similar to the Stellas (acid-free, etc).

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

they're definitely slightly different formulas but still very similar - I couldn't find any info on the SN site though so scrapbookers and whatnot just need to take that into consideration if they happen to not be acid-free!

[@JaneMetcalfe]

At the time I emailed Crafters Companion (the makers of the markers) and it was them who told me they were water-based. If you want to know if they are acid free I suggest you do the same. Hope this helps.:-)

[@rainbowferndesigns]

I've seen gold and silver spectrum noir sparkle pens.. They were exclusive to the plastic cases x

[@auroradawnikins]

You can buy them in a set of three here in the UK so I assume it would be the same in the US.

[@JanScholl]

Actually MarkerPop has three sets of 12. Vintage, Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter

[@NancyLynn]

Amy, this was a great review in my opinion...you were unbiased and covered every aspect between the two thoroughly....TFS Amy.

[@countrygirl4422]

Would've been nice to see more colors.

[@scrappymoodnz]

Great review 😊 thank you! P.S. Love hearing your happy bubbas in the background 😊

[@myw08902]

Both of products can be blended better on water coloring papers

[@sandybb36]

My question is can you just use the Spectrum Noir clear sparkle over whatever you colored with ink, etc?

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

+sandybb36 yes

[@eshalmahmood5227]

you should check out copic

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

I have almost 800 videos on KZbin and tons of ones using Copics...

[@AafkeVultink]

You are not good for my wallet. I just bought the spectrum noir alcohol markers. And I LOVE their line of products. Drooling over their aquamarkers and these,hahaha Love Cards with bling, specially cards where you need the shimmer for dew or night sky.

[@jacquelinerodriguez9589]

I was wondering are the spectrum glitter ones good to use on Adult coloring books for coloring

[@PrairiePaperandInk]

I personally wouldn't use them for that as the brush is too large IMO

[@julieforrest6936]

7

[@paulagiordanograeber9292]

So yeah, umm.